For the fourth consecutive year, BNL - BNP Paribas Group - will be the title sponsor of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia tennis event. The tournament, which is in its 67th year, will welcome the elite ATP and WTA players to Rome from April 25 to May 8. A new centre court, which can seat 10,000 spectators, was inaugurated on the eve of the tournament for the Fed Cup by BNP Paribas semi final, which was won by the Italian team. Respectively sponsors of the Fed Cup since 2005 and the Internazionali BNL d'Italia since 2007, BNP Paribas and BNL benefit from exceptional media exposure during the two-week tournament. The bank will use this event to ramp up its initiatives for both current and prospective customers.

The Internazionali BNL d'Italia is one of the nine Masters 1000 events, the second most prestigious ATP event category, behind the four Grand Slams. It is part of the WTA season's Top 20 and, this year, welcomes nine of the world's top ten players. BNL is organising a major public relations initiative for the event and will welcome close to 400 customers and prospects each day. A BNL branch will be open to spectators in the retail village at the Foro Italico complex and will also serve as the theatre for the EduCare days, where BNL professionals will provide training to young people on the bank's different businesses. BNL has centred its sponsorship campaign on the transfer of knowledge and will invite forty students from the Aquila Science School, as well as students from a school in Rome which collected the most donations during the Italian Telethon, to take part in the event.

BNL has benefited from BNP Paribas' 37 years' experience in tennis to take its place as a major player in the sport in Italy, where the Group provides support at all levels – professional, amateur, educational and social.Through its sponsorship of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia, Davis Cup and Fed Cup, in addition to an event on the wheelchair tennis circuit, BNL is offering its current and prospective customers access to the best of tennis. Promoting tennis and access to courts are key aspects of BNL's sponsorship policy. The Group is a partner of the Italian Tennis Federation and, in this role, organises a number of amateur tournaments including the BNL Revolution Cup, contested by eight tennis clubs from the Greater Rome area. In collaboration with the Italian Tennis Federation, BNL has implemented the FIT Ranking Program, an educational initiative which aims to facilitate learning by basing lessons around tennis. Lastly, there is also a social dimension through support for the Tennis Telethon, which, like in France, aims to collect donations and provide support for medical research.

BNP Paribas and TennisThroughout the world, for 37 years, the Group's sponsorship policy has come to cover every aspect of tennis: professional, educational, family and social.BNP Paribas has gradually become the leading sponsor in world tennis: official sponsor of Roland Garros since 1973, title sponsor of the BNP Paribas Masters since 1986, of the Bank of the West Classic in California since 1991, of Davis Cup by BNP Paribas since 2001, Fed Cup by BNP Paribas since 2005, of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome since 2006, and of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells since 2009, as well as being actively involved in many other international competitions (Grand Prix Hassan II in Casablanca, Open 13 in Marseille, etc.) and the NEC Wheelchair Tennis Tour. Through its support of several national tennis associations, 2000 clubs, 550 amateur tournaments and educational and social programmes around the world, BNP Paribas is actively involved in the promotion of tennis and in encouraging people from all walks of life to take part in the sport. The Group's commitment to the values of social awareness are reflected in the sponsorships it has developed through numerous projects including Yannick Noah's “Fête le Mur association” or the tennis Téléthon in France, the Oberer Tennis Camp in Switzerland or the BNP Paribas Taste of Tennis in the United States.

About BNP Paribas BNP Paribas (www.bnpparibas.com) is one of the six strongest banks in the world according to Standard & Poor's* and the largest bank in the eurozone by deposits. With a presence in more than 80 countries and more than 200,000 employees, including 160,000 in Europe, BNP Paribas is a leading European provider of financial services on a worldwide scale. It ranks highly in its three core activities: Retail Banking, Investment Solutions and Corporate & Investment Banking. In Retail Banking, the Group has four domestic markets: Belgium, France, Italy and Luxembourg. BNP Paribas is rolling out its integrated model across the Europe-Mediterranean zone and boasts a large network in the United States. BNP Paribas Personal Finance is the leader in consumer lending in Europe. In its Corporate & Investment Banking and Investment Solutions activities, BNP Paribas also enjoys top positions in Europe and solid and fast-growing businesses in Asia. *Within its peer group